


i say that it's all fine, the truth is that's a lie

by Carodrug



Series: The Good Place [1]
Category: The Good Place (TV), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Good Place (TV) Fusion, Beta Wanted, How Do I Tag, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Soulmates, do i add character death if they're supposed to be dead since the beggining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2019-10-22 03:38:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17655320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carodrug/pseuds/Carodrug
Summary: "You, Park Jimin, are dead."In the afterlife, there's a Good Place, and there's a Bad Place.For some reason, Jimin ends up in the Good Place, living in a home built for someone else, with a soulmate that doesn't belong to him. Now, if he wants to avoid eternal damnation, he must learn to be a good person before somebody realizes he's the reason everything has been out of control in what's supposed to be paradise.





	1. i. everything is fine

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, this is gonna be heavily based the TV show "The Good Place", but it'll still be completely understandable if you haven't watched it.  
> Without further due, enjoy.

The first thing Jimin sees when he opens his eyes is a huge **"WELCOME! EVERYTHING IS FINE"** written in big letters on the wall in front of him. After further inspection, he realizes he's sitting in a grey long couch, in what seems to be a waiting room. Before he can do anything else, a door is opened to his left, from where a man in a suit with black hair and cat-like eyes emerges.

"Park Jimin? Come on in." He says before retreating inside the door.

Although a little confused, Jimin follows him to discover an office on the other side, decorated in a minimalist style with light brown tones. The man is already sitting across a wood desk, looking at a clipboard in his hands. He smiles at Jimin and nods to the chair in front of the desk, Jimin takes that as his queue to sit.

"Hi Jimin, I'm Min Yoongi. How are you today?"

"I’m great. Thank you for asking." He smiles before continuing. "Just one question: Where am I, who are you, and what’s going on?" 

Min Yoongi leans forward with a serious expression.

"Right, so, you, Park Jimin, are dead. Your life on Earth has ended and now you're on your next phase of your existence in the universe."

Jimin nods, understanding. He frowns, a sudden question on his mind.

"And... Am I...? Is this...?" He points at the ceiling with his index, a nervous smile on his face. "Or...?" He then points down, smile now replaced with a grimace.

 Yoongi leans back on his chair.

 "Well, it's not the heaven-or-hell idea that people usually think of, but generally speaking, in the afterlife, there's a _Good Place_ and there's a _Bad Place_." He smiles gently at Jimin. "You're in the _Good Place_."

 Jimin sighs, relieved. A soft smile takes place on his lips.

 "Well, that's... good."

"Let's take a walk, shall we?"

Yoongi stands before walking out of the office. Jimin proceeds to follow him through the waiting room, to end opposite to the office, through a door he hadn't even realized it was there.

 

* * *

 

Walking next to the Yoongi, Jimin is surprised by a beautifully manicured path, different stores to both sides of the path, with a lot of flowers everywhere. The whole place has a very Spanish villa kind of aesthetic.

“So, this is how it works: The _Good Place_ is divided into distinct neighborhoods, each one contains exactly three hundred and twenty-two people who have been perfectly selected to blend together into a blissful harmonic balance.” Yoongi says with a proud smile on his face.

“Do all neighborhoods look like this?”

“No, every neighborhood is unique. Some have warm weather, some cold, some are cities, some farm land.” Yoongi stops walking when they reach what appears to be the town square. “But in each one, every blade of grass, every ladybug, every detail has been precisely designed and calibrated for its residents.”

While Jimin continues to look around, he realizes something in particular among the many stores.

“There’s a lot of frozen yogurt places.”

Yoongi sighs, looking down.

“Yeah.” He says with a frown. “I don’t know what to tell you, people love frozen yogurt.” He looks back at Jimin. “I know you’re gonna have a million more questions, but for now, you should grab a seat.”

Jimin walks, alone, to the only unoccupied one of the many chairs placed in the town square. In front of the chairs, there’s a stage made out of stone. Once he sits down, Yoongi walks on stage and waves to all with a gummy smile.

“Hello, everyone, and welcome to your first day in the afterlife! You were all, simply put, good people. But how do we know that you were good? How are we sure?”

As Yoongi is talking, a big video screen appears behind him out of nowhere.

“During your time on Earth, every one of your actions had a positive or a negative value, depending on how much good or bad that action put into the universe. Every single thing you did had an effect that rippled out over time and ultimately created some amount of good or bad.”

In the screen, some actions, such as **“PLANT A BAOBAB TREE IN MADAGASCAR”** and **“COMMIT GENOCIDE”** , appeared accompanied with numbers, each one written in either red or green.

“Anyway, when your time on Earth has ended, we calculate the total value of your life using our perfectly accurate measuring system. Only the people with the very highest scores, get to come here to the _Good Place._ And what happens to everyone else?” Yoongi shrugs. “Don’t worry about them. The point is, you are here because you lived one of the very best lives. And you won’t be alone, your true soulmate is here too.”

At the mention of a soulmate, the crowd is filled with gasps and murmurs, everyone looking around their places to try and find said person.

Yoongi continues.

“That’s right. One of the other people in your neighborhood is your actual soulmate, and you will spend eternity together.”

When Jimin turns to look at people around him, a dark brunet with a bunny smile, who also seemed to be excitedly searching for his soulmate in the crow, caught his eye. When the brunet looked at Jimin, he returned the guy’s smile before turning back to Yoongi.

“So welcome to eternal happiness. Welcome to the _Good Place._ ” Yoongi bows, the crowd clapping at him, before he walks down of stage.

As people begin to walk away, Jimin is once more approached by the suited man, who says will walk him to his new home. They walk through a path away from the buildings, which leads to some houses, all built with different architecture styles, surrounded by large landscapes and spaced from each other.

“I just can’t keep thinking about all the people in the _Bad Place_ , it just seems so hard to believe I’m here.” Jimin asks, a concerned expression on his face.

“Again, is an incredibly selective system, most people don’t make it here.” Yoongi stops him, placing his hands on the other’s shoulders. “But you, a lawyer who got innocent people off death row, you’re special, Jimin.”

Jimin smiles nervously.

“By the way, welcome to your new home” Yoongi puts his hands down and looks to the side. There, a one-story yellow house, with the lateral walls painted in blue and a red entrance, is surrounded by a grey stone fence.

“Perfect, isn’t it? You see, in the _Good Place_ , every person gets to live in a home that perfectly matches their true essence.” Yoongi looks at Jimin, excited to see his reaction.

“Oh… So, I guess that’s why my house, for example, is this adorable little cottage whereas other people might have homes that are bigger, like that one.” Jimin points to the house in the right of his, a three-story mansion with a big fountain in front of it.

“Exactly.” Says the man as he guides Jimin to the front door.

 

* * *

 

“As you can see, the interior has been decorated just like you like it, in the Icelandic primitive style.” Jimin looks around, the house isn’t exactly horrible, but it isn’t the way he would’ve preferred it.

Going through the front door, he is immediately greeted by the living room, and from there, there’s three ways to go. To the left, there’s a big office with many bookshelves and a large table, alongside a few sofas, decorated in warm colors. Past the living room, there’s a small kitchen in yellow and grey tones, with a counter bar separating the two spaces. And to the right, behind an elevation up to Jimin’s thighs, there’s the master bedroom, along with a corridor that guides to the bathroom and the guest bedroom.

Yoongi walks behind Jimin and guides him to the couches.

“Now, let me show you the video system here.” He points to the elevation in front of the bedroom, and raises his hand, a screen appearing out of thin air. “You can review everything that happened in your life from your point of view.”

Four white circles float, moving round on screen, the words **“WORK”** , **“FAMILY”** , **“FRIENDS”** and **“VOLUNTEER WORK”** are written in green. Yoongi selects the last one.

“There we go. This is your human rights mission to the Ukraine.” On screen appear multiple children grabbing toys and bottled water from a box ‘he’ is holding. “It really put you over the top.”

Suddenly, there’s a knock on the door, which he just realized was left opened. Jimin turns around to look at a tall man with light brown hair, looking shyly inside as he awaits to be let in.

“Ah! Namjoon, come on in.” Yoongi walks away from Jimin so the stranger, _Namjoon_ , can come closer.

“Park Jimin? I’m Kim Namjoon, and you are my soulmate” He says as he walks towards Jimin, smiling shyly while his dimples show.

 _Cute,_ Jimin thinks.  

“Woah! Bring it in, man.” Responds Jimin with open arms as he goes in for a hug, which Namjoon gladly responds.

“Now, you’ll have to excuse me. I have other people to attend to.” Says Yoongi as he walks towards the exit, the screen still displaying Jimin’s ‘memory’ in the background.

Once Yoongi is gone, they move to the sofas.

“So, tell me about yourself, Namjoon.”

“Well, I was a professor. I was born in Seoul, in 1994, but my work took me to several places, like Australia, Hong Kong, Paris. What about you?” Namjoon asks, looking at Jimin like he hung the moon in the sky.

“Well… I was born in Busan, 1995, I also went to school in Seoul, and then, I moved back to Busan.” Jimin shrugs sheepishly, Namjoon smiling at his words.

“There’s something I want to say.” The taller one reaches for his hands. “Jimin, I have spent my entire life in pursuit of fundamental truths about the universe, and now we can actually learn about them together as soulmates. It’s overwhelming.”

Jimin’s expression turns serious.

“Namjoon, you’ll stay by my side no matter what, right?”

“Of course, I will.” Namjoon looked concerned at the younger.

“Promise me. Say ‘I promise I will never betray you for any reason’”

Namjoon puts his right hand over his heart, smiling gently at Jimin.

“Park Jimin, I wear that I will never say or do anything to cause you any harm.”

“Good.” Says Jimin, as he turns to point at the screen in front of them, where ‘he’ is now reading the children a book. “Because those aren’t my memories. I wasn’t a lawyer, I never went to the Ukraine. There’s been a big mistake. I’m not supposed to be here.” A smile sitting on his face as his hands, now free of Namjoon’s, make a _taa daa_ motion.

Namjoon just stares at him, wide eyed.

"Wait, what?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really interested in seeing what you think about this, so please don't refrain yourself from leaving comments.  
> I'll try to post the next chapter this week. Thank you for reading ♡


	2. ii. are you sure?

“Are you sure this isn't you?” Namjoon says, looking at the screen where now 'Jimin' is playing with some of the kids.

Jimin stands to walk closer to the screen.

“Yeah, man. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t a death-row lawyer who rescued orphans.” As he turns his back to face Namjoon once again, the screen disappears. “They got my name right, but nothing else. I mean, somebody royally  _forked_  up.”

Just as he’s about to laugh at his situation, he realizes something.

“Somebody  _forked_  up.” He repeats, then frowns. “Why can’t I say ‘fork’?”

“If you’re trying to curse, you can’t here. I guess a lot of people in this neighborhood don’t like it, so it’s prohibited.” Namjoon explains him.

“That’s bull-shirt.” Jimin chuckles.

His supposed stands from the sofa and gets closer to him.

“So, if you’re not this person, then, who are you? What did you do for a living?”

“I was...” He hesitates. “... in... sales.”

 

 

 

> _Jimin, a few years younger, his hair painted in a vibrant red, as opposed to the blond color he currently has, stands in front of an older man. They’re both in a medium sized office with lots of people working in small cubicles._
> 
> _“... So, we sell only two products, NasaPRO and NasaPRO Silver.” The man lifts a jar of pills in each of hand. “We aim this at seniors. Now, you can’t legally call it ‘medicine’ because it doesn’t technically...work, and it is technically... chalk, so what you’re gonna want do to—”_
> 
> _Jimin decides to interrupt before these ‘technicalities’ take more of his time._
> 
> _"You need me to lie to old people and scare them into buying fake medicine, I get it man. Which one’s my desk?” He finishes while looking around the office._

 

 

“So, your job was to defraud the elderly...?” Jimin nods. “Sorry, the sick and elderly?”

“But I was very good at it.” Jimin says proudly. “I was the top salesperson five years running.”

“Okay, but that’s worse. You do get how that’s worse, right?” Namjoon asks, stunned.

 

* * *

 

 

They sit in one of the outer tables of the many frozen yogurt places. A cup filled with chocolate yogurt sits in his hand, the name of the store, « **YOGURT YOGHURT YOGURTÉ** », written on many times around it.

“You know, maybe it’s a test. Maybe if you go to Yoongi and you tell him the truth, you’ll pass the test.” Namjoon suggests, an optimistic smile on his face.

“No way.” Jimin grabs another spoonful. “I can’t risk going to the  _Bad Place_.”

“Well, maybe it’s not actually, like, all that bad.” The older one leans back on his chair, his cup forgotten long ago. “Let’s just get some information first. We'll ask Taehyung. Hey, Taehyung?”

A low ding sound can be heard. From where, Jimin has no idea, but it reminds him of the way his phone used to sound when he got a notification.

“Hi, there.” Says a baritone voice, startling Jimin. A tall man, dressed in an oversized shirt with silver hair and a boxy smile, stands beside their table, where previously no one remotely similar to him was nearby. “How can I help you?”

“What the  _fork_? Who are you?” Jimin frowns at him.

“I’m Taehyung.” He responds, still smiling widely. “I’m the informational assistant here in the  _Good Place_.”

“He’s like this walking database. You can ask him about the creation of the universe, or history—”

“Oh, there was a guy who lived in Seoul, South Korea, around 2014. His name is Ha Sungwoon. Is he straight?” Jimin inquires excitedly.

“No.” He answers promptly.

Jimin is shocked.

“Really?! Wow, guess he just didn’t wanna have sex with me.” He finishes frowning.

“That’s correct.”

“Well, that’s okay. I wasn’t really that into him anyways.” He shrugs.

“Yes, you were.” The fact that he was still smiling through all the conversation was getting annoying.

Namjoon interrupts before he might say anything he’ll regret.

“Okay, Taehyung, I have a question.” Said man _(could he be considered a man?)_ turns to the taller one. “What is the _Bad Place_ like?”

He grimaces.

“Sorry, that is the one topic I’m not allowed to tell you about.” The smile returns. “I can only play you a brief audio clip of what is happening there right now.”

“Okay,” Namjoon nods.

Taehyung lifts his right index, then, a cacophony of horrifying screams and moans is heard. Jimin, now out of appetite, puts his cup on the table. After a few seconds, the sounds stop.

“Well, it doesn’t sound awesome.” He says, staring pointedly at Namjoon.

 

* * *

 

 

“Does everyone have a huge house except me?” Jimin asks while Namjoon and him walk past a row of large, beautiful mansions.

They reach one of the open spaces in the neighborhood. The paths to it filled with rows of many colorful trees and flowers. A big fountain with lotus flowers occupies the center of it.

Jimin waits until a couple walking through it get past them, and then he grabs Namjoon’s arm, making him stop as they get closer to the fountain.

“Okay, we need a plan. I say we just lie low and hope they don’t notice me.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t think I can help you.” Namjoon says with an apologetic expression. “I just don’t like being dishonest, and I can’t advise you to be dishonest either.

“Come on, I’m just asking you to fudge a little bit. You must’ve told a few white lies in your life. I mean you were a professor, for _forks_ sake!”

Namjoon crosses his arms.

“Yeah, I taught ethics and moral philosophy.”

“Mother- _forker_!” Jimin chuckles.

“I’m getting a stomachache.” The older one frowns as he hugs his middle. “I’m in a perfect utopia and I’m… I have a stomachache, this is awful.” He sighs.” I, uh… I think I have to tell Yoongi about this.”

“Tell Yoongi about what?” A familiar voice interrupts before Jimin can even try to convince Namjoon not to rat him out, startling both.

When they turn to the voice, they see Yoongi walking towards them, but he’s not alone. He’s accompanied by two men holding hands.

One of them is the same guy with a bunny smile Jimin saw earlier, although currently his face is devoid of any grin. Now that he’s standing, Jimin can see he’s taller than him, the muscular built he has can’t be hidden by the white tunic he’s wearing.

The other man is a completely new face, and an extremely handsome one. He’s also tall, around the same height as _Bunny Smile_ , but his shoulders are broader. He was wearing a reflective black suit coat, matching with his black hair, and a low-cut button up. If Jimin were to see him on the streets, he might’ve even thought he was an idol, everything about this man screamed _high class._

“Yoongi! Hi!” Jimin gives Namjoon a warning look as he hooks their arms together before he turns to the newcomers. “What have you been up to?”

“Jimin, Namjoon.” He motions to the couple he’s with. “I would like you to meet Kim Seokjin and Li Jianyu. They’re soulmates and your next-door neighbors.”

“Hello, I’m Seokjin.” The fancy looking man, _Seokjin_ , bows to both of them, still not letting go of the other’s hand, then he turns to Jimin. “Can I just say I love your house? It’s just so _tiny_ and _cute_.” He emphasizes. “It’s like a little child’s plaything, like for a family of mice, or for a very fancy little dog. I love it, it’s just so _sweet_ and _teensy._ Just like _you_.” He pokes Jimin’s nose, and he isn’t entirely sure this man is mocking him or if he genuinely likes his house. Jimin would gladly trade it for his mansion any day.

“Seokjin and Jianyu are having a little welcome party tonight, and they’ve invited the entire neighborhood.” Yoongi mentions.

“I simply adore entertaining. Don’t I just adore it, Jianyu?” He turns to _Bunny Smile_ , all he gets back is a nod. “Oh, yes, by the way, Jianyu here is a Buddhist monk, you see, and he obeys a strict code of silence.” Jianyu nods as the other explains. “So, when you see him smiling and nodding, that’s actually his way of jumping up and down with glee. Isn’t that right, darling?”

Another nod and a shy smile.

“So, we’ll see you tonight?” He asks.

“Yes.” Answers Namjoon excitedly, Jimin still hanging on his arm.

 

* * *

 

 

Classical music is being played as they walk through the main door of their neighbors’ mansion, both of them suited up.

“No way.” Says Jimin as he admires the room.

The chandeliers illuminating the white marvel walls floors and two-way staircase. The room was all filled with white and gold. The place looked more expensive than anywhere Jimin had ever been when he was alive.

From the staircase descend Jianyu and Seokjin. Jungkook was wearing an armless red and orange kasaya, showing his muscly arms; while Seokjin, on the other hand, looked even more dazzling than in the morning, sporting a gold embroidered, red velvet jacket. The latter waves at them.

“The entire house could fit in this room.” He makes a circle with his index as he whines to Namjoon.

“Okay, uh… Help me out here.” Namjoon grabs him by the shoulders to look him in the eye. “Tell me one good thing that you did on Earth, just one truly kind and decent act, so that I can feel better about helping you out.” He finishes with a small smile.

“Uh…”

“Let’s forget about good. Just tell me something neutral about yourself. Like, tell me about the day before you died. What do you remember?”

 

 

 

>  
> 
> _As the electric stairs lift him from the parking lot, Jimin sips the last of his Starbucks while checking his phone, but before he’s able to get far, a voice makes him lift his eyes from the screen._
> 
> _“Hi there. Do you have a second to talk about the environment?” Asks a younger looking guy, offering him a pamphlet._
> 
> _“Do you have a second to eat my farts?” He smiles sarcastically at the guy, then throws his cup at the guy’s feet, who was, coincidentally, juts besides the trash bin. He walks away looking at his phone, once again._
> 
> _“You missed.” Points the guy, naively._
> 
> _Jimin scoffs._
> 
> _“Pick it up if you’re so horny for the environment.”_

Jimin looks to the side.

“I don’t remember anything specific.”

“Oh…” Namjoon looks crestfallen.

“Look.” Says Jimin as he grabs Namjoon’s hands from his shoulders. “I might not have been a saint, but it’s not like I killed anybody. I wasn’t an arsonist. I never found a wallet on the street and thought about returning it but saw the owner lived in another province, so just took the cash and dropped the wallet back on the ground.”

“Okay, that’s really specific, and that makes me think you definitely did do that.” Namjoon gives him a disapproving look.

“All I’m saying is these people might be ‘good’,” he air quotes. “but are they really that much better than me?” He finishes with a smug look.

 

* * *

 

“Well, I spent half my life in North Korea fighting for women’s rights and the other half in Saudi Arabia fighting for gay rights.” States the first man, Kim Doyoung, they have a conversation with.

“So, we said, ‘If the UN won’t remove those landmines, we will.’” Declares the second person, a woman called Lee Jieun, whose soulmate, Yoo Inna, looks adoringly at, it reminds him of the way Namjoon looked at him before he learnt who ‘his soulmate’ really was. Jimin drinks the remaining of his wine, already on his fourth glass. “And we dug up over a thousand unexploded land mines from the area surrounding the orphanage.”

“Oh, forget it. Heading to the bar!” He turns away from the couple, a clear mission on his mind. He could faintly hear Namjoon apologize to them before running up to catch up with him.

Namjoon grabs him by the hand, stopping before he can get anywhere close to the bar. The sound of someone clicking his glass makes him stop from yelling at the older one to let go.

They turn to the center of the room, where a crowd has already gathered around Min Yoongi. As everyone starts clapping, Jimin exchanges his empty glass with Namjoon’s almost full one, the guy had barely even drunk from it.

“Thank you, thank you.” He bows. “You all know that I am the architect of this neighborhood. But what you don’t know is… Well, I’m not supposed to tell you this, but, um… Oh, what the heck! This is actually the very first neighborhood that I have ever designed! I have been an apprentice for over two hundred years, and my boss has finally given me my first solo project.” He finishes with a gummy smile as the crowd claps once again.

As Jimin and Namjoon listen from the distance, Taehyung passes by, holding a tray with a shrimp cocktail.

“Ah, ah, ah.” Jimin grabs him by the arm to stop him. “Hold on there. Let me get more of them shrampies”

He grabs more than half of the shrimps in the cocktail.

“Easy.” Namjoon chastises him.

“What? They’re for everybody, right?” Jimin scowls.

“Yes, exactly.”

He tunes in again to Yoongi’s voice.

“…and you deserve a perfect world because every single one of you… is a _good person_.” It might by he’s getting affected by all the alcohol he has consumed, but he’s pretty sure Yoongi looked right at him. “That’s it for me. Back to you, Seokjin.”

He moves to the side as everyone claps. Seokjin takes his place in the center of the crowd.

“Bravo, Yoongi!” He says while clapping, once everyone calms down, he speaks. “I would just like to quickly say, if any o you would like to play tennis tonight, we have 36 regulation grass tennis courts. Such fun. Cheers.”

He chuckles, then moves to the side while the crow applauds.

“Seokjin,” Jimin says with a mocking expression. “what a condescending _bench_. Am I right?”

Namjoon shushes him as the people around him start staring.

“Oh, hello.” He tries to imitate the way the other talks. “I am just a big, broad shouldered, handsome, utterly perfect giraffe.”

Namjoon takes the wine out of his hand and puts the cups on a table nearby.

“Okay, I think it’s time to go home.” He says as he walks him towards the exit, a hand on his lower back.

“Wait, wait, wait. I just have to go upstairs really quick and steal a bunch of gold stuff.” He stops walking to explain him.

“Okay, don’t do that.” The taller one reprimands him.

Jimin looks him in the eye for a few seconds before he runs.

“No, Jimin. Jimin!” Namjoon runs after him.

 

 


	3. iii. the beginning

“Hello, creepy house that I hate!” He screams from Namjoon’s back. Back at the party, he managed to convince Jimin not to steal anything, and in return, he had to piggyback the younger all the way back to the house.

He hopped off the other’s back and immediately kicked his shoes away.

“Why aren’t there stairs here?!” He screams to the elevation leading to the bedrooms.

He climbs it with difficulty, since the cursed thing was up to his thigh. Namjoon just watched amusedly.

“What kind of weirdo house is this?” Jimin asks from the floor.

As he gets up, a shrimp falls out of his pants. He just grabs it and eats it.

“Did you stuff your pants with shrimp?” Namjoon asks, disapprovingly.

“No.” Jimin scowls, then hiccups. “Yes.”

Namjoon deadpans.

“Whatever, its freakin’ heaven.” He says as he pulls more shrimps from his pockets. “I’m sure they have plenty of shellfish.”

Namjoon proceeds to climb the elevation while he walks to the master bedroom.

“That Seokjin is a real butthead, huh?” He gasps. “Hey, at least I can still say ‘butthead’. Ugh, he is a butthead.”

He falls face straight into the mattress, tuxedo still on. He can hear some drawers opening and closing in the background.

“Found some pajamas.” Says Namjoon. Jimin sits up to see the man has placed some folded clothes beside him, while he holds some in his hands. “So, listen, soulmates are supposed to live together. And even though we’re technically not, because you're not even supposed to be in here, we still have to share the house, but you can just consider me your roommate. I’ll take my stuff to the guestroom tomorrow.”

“Namjoon…” His voice makes the taller stop as he’s walking away. When he turns back to Jimin, he continues. “I’m sorry that you had to deal with this.”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not, though.” Jimin sighs. “Do you think anybody cared that I died?”

The other’s expression softens. The blond stares into space.

“Maybe someone did. I don’t know. I was an only child; my parents were divorced when I was a kid. They were both crummy people, so they’re probably…” He points down with his thumb. “In the _Bad Place_. Maybe they’re being used to torture each other.” He looks at Namjoon, eyebrows raised. “It would work.”

The light brunet chuckles.

“I bet way more people cared that you died.” Jimin smiles at him. “’Cause you’re a nice person. You’re a nice person, Namjoon… Lee.”

“Kim. Kim Namjoon.” He corrects him.

“Im. Im Nayoung.” Jimin gasps. “That’s a person. I did it! Goodnight.”

He leans back in the bed, not bothering to change clothes.

“Goodnight.” Jimin can hear Namjoon’s steps as he walks out of the room.

 

* * *

 

 

Thunders are what wakes him up.

Jimin raises his head from the pillow to glance at the window in the side of his room. The curtains are closed, most likely by Namjoon, but even then, he’s able to see the lightnings through it.

“That can’t be good.” He reaches for his folded pajamas, still where Namjoon left them. He’s certainly not going to go out on the streets with the wrinkled suit and let everyone see, specially Kim Seokjin, how much of a lazy ass he really was.

Once dressed, he walks to the window to find for himself what was really going on, but as he gets closer, he’s can hear music from outside.

He might be going insane, but he’s pretty sure the song that’s playing is ‘Whatta Man’ by I.O.I, Lim Nayoung’s former group. The blond really hopes it’s just a coincidence.

When he draws the curtains, he’s rewarded with a sight he never expected to witness, even less in ‘paradise’.

 

"Oh, _fork_."

 

It could only be described as chaos. Outside, people were running as flying giant shrimp were speeding through the sky, leaving grey smoke where they passed by; forks, even bigger than the seafood, were raining and impaling themselves right into the ground. And for some reason, even an enormous ladybug was parading around the neighborhood!

 

* * *

 

Seokjin, who just dodged being crushed by a giant ladybug, ran up to catch up to Yoongi, who was, like everyone else, in yellow and black horizontally striped pajamas.

It’s not that he didn’t look good in them, _Seokjin looked good in everything_ , but it wasn’t exactly what he went to sleep in!

“Yoongi?”

“Hmm?” Responds the shorter one, eyes focused on the sky.

“Is that giant, terrifying ladybug supposed to be there?” He signals the insect, who’s still chasing after some other poor couple.

“Ah. Well, great question, Seokjin.” He frowns, then turns to the other. “No, it’s not. I have no idea why any of this is happening or how to control it.”

“Should we run away, then?” He suggests, a frightened expression on his face.

“Yes!” He screams before running away.

 _Great, so the person who knows the most about how everything worked around here is just as lost as us_ , thinks Seokjin.

And he still hasn’t found Jianyu.

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Namjoon watched as a group of people ran from some human sized medicine jars from besides one of the stores in the villa.

As he turned his head, he saw some of the tulips in a flowerbox nearby trying to bite each other’s heads. _What the hell was going on?_

“NAMJOON! Namjoon! What’s going on?!” Yells a frantic Jimin, barely making it down the road before a herd of giraffes ran down the street. “Why are there giant everything, everywhere?”

That’s when Kim Namjoon he realized something.

“Do you hear I.O.I playing?” Asks the perplexed blond, then he notices the elder’s clothes. “Why is everyone wearing black and yellow?”

“You’re not.” He points out, alarmed. Jimin looks down at his garments. “You’re the only one who’s not. Jimin, this is all happening because of _you.”_

“Oh, _fork_ me.” The other says as he takes him by the hand and drags him home before anyone else notices.

 

* * *

 

 

“Okay, we don’t know this is because of me.” Jimin tries to explain as he walks after Namjoon, who hurried over to the kitchen window, the one facing their fenced backyard, as they entered the house.

“Jimin, this place is a perfectly made Swiss watch and you’re a wrench in the gears. Actually,” The brunet turns away from the window to face Jimin. “you’re a hammer, just smashing the gears into dust.”

“Oh, hang on.” He intervenes. “Not everybody here is perfect, okay? Seokjin is totally condescending, and, there are a couple of, you know, chunksters.”

“Oh, come on!” The elder walks away from him, heading to the living room.

“I’m just saying! I’m not the only one with flaws, so how can we be sure this is my fault?” Unluckily for Namjoon, he follows him.

Namjoon starts counting with his fingers as he talks.

“You hogged all the shrimp, and now there are shrimp flying around. You called Seokjin a giraffe, and now there are giraffes everywhere. You…”

“Okay, fine.” He interrupts. “Turns out there are many ways to know that it was me.”

Namjoon runs his hand through his hair.

“Let’s just face it, Jimin, you don’t belong here.”

Jimin is speechless for a few seconds.

“Well, then this system sucks! What, one in a million gets to live in paradise and everyone else is tortured for eternity? Come on!”

The other stares blankly at him.

“I mean, I wasn’t freaking Gandhi, but I was okay.” The blond at himself. “I was a medium person. I should get to spend eternity in a medium place! Everyone who wasn’t perfect but wasn’t terrible in somewhere like that.”

“Look, apparently it doesn’t work that way.” Namjoon explains calmly. “I’m sorry, Jimin, but there’s nothing anyone can do.”

He gets an idea.

“Unless…” Jimin looks at him hopefully. “There is something we can do. Unless you could teach me.”

The taller one frowns.

“Teach you what?”

“How to be good. That was your job, right? A professor of ethics?” He shrugs. “No one knew I was a problem when I arrived.  Things only got crazy after I was an _ash-hole_ to everyone at the party. UGH! You know I’m trying to say _ash-hole_ and not ‘ash-hole’, right?”

“I got that, yes.” Responds the other, face scrunched up with concentration.

“Give me a chance. Let me earn my place here.” Jimin begs.

Before Namjoon can say anything, there’s a knock at their door.

“Hey, guys!” Says Yoongi from the other side of it. “Emergency neighborhood meeting, now!”

“We’ll be right there, Yoongi!” He whispers in a desperate tone to the other. “If I walk out of here in these clothes, I’m toast. My soul is in your hands, soulmate. What’s it gonna be?” 


	4. iv. a lot to improve

Namjoon sits on the nearest sofa.

“I don’t know what to do here. This is a mess, morally speaking, this is a putrid, disgusting bowl of ethical soup.”

Jimin sits next to him.

“Okay, well, how about we just chill and go to the town meeting and talk it out after?” The other opens his mouth but he interrupts. “Great. Hey, how do I make that helper guy show up?”

He stands up, looking around the room.

“Hello? Front desk man? Magical slave robot?”

“Excuse me, Taehyung?” Namjoon rolls his eyes.

“Hi, there.” Says a voice behind Jimin, making him jump.

“Still not used to it.” He says as he turns around to face the silver haired, who was also dressed in black and yellow. “Um… Taehyung, I need… Quick question, can anyone access our search history?”

“It is 100% confidential, no one can access what you ask me, including Yoongi.” The other smiles, before leaning closer to him. “Now, what kind of pornography would you like to see?”

“No. No, no, no, not porn.” He shakes his head, chuckling. “I, um… I need clothes, like yours and Namjoon’s, with the stripes.

A notification kind of sound later, Taehyung pulled from his back folded clothes, in the same color scheme as the ones everyone was wearing.

“Here you go.”

 

* * *

 

 

Indistinct chatter can be heard from everywhere as the couple walked into their neighbors’ house.

“Everybody, everybody!” Yoongi’s voice resonates from down the two-way staircase, making the crowd stop talking. “Gather around, please.”

Soon, everybody circles Yoongi and Taehyung, both dressed in their stripped formal attires.

“Obviously, there’s something very wrong with this neighborhood.” The short one explains as he begins counting with his fingers. “We don’t know what it is, how long it will last, or what caused it. What do we know, Taehyung?”

He turns to ask the other besides him.

“We know where it happened.” He pauses. “Here.”

“Yes, thank you, Taehyung.” He faces the crowd again. “The chaos happens here. See, that’s the trouble with these perfect systems. One little flaw can lead to…”

Jimin can feel Namjoon’s stare on him, and he elbows him discreetly to make him stop.

“Well, it can lead to… well, chaos.” He pats inside his jacket, then turns to Taehyung once again. “My armpits area leaking. What is this called, again?”

“Sweat.” The taller one responds.

“Right, right.” He faces the crowd again, chuckling. “Still not used to being in a human body.”

“And what do you do with sweat?” He asks Taehyung. “Do you lick it away, is that right?”

He lifts his arm and bends his face near his armpit, about to try and lick it before the informational assistant interrupts.

“No, you dab it with a cloth.” He puts his hands behind his back, and retrieves a yellow and black stripped handkerchief out of nowhere.

“Right.” Yoongi proceeds to do as he’s told and dabs the inside of his jacket with the handkerchief. “And then you lick the cloth? That seems weirder.”

He licks it anyways.

“Yoongi.” Seokjin’s voice makes him stop. “Look!”

Seokjin points at himself, as the stripes wash off his clothes, returning them to their original color.

“Okay. That’s a good sign.” Yoongi sighs. “It could mean that this is almost over.”

“Oh, such a relief.” Seokjin brushes his hair aside with one hand. “That was my first time being anywhere near as a ‘fashion don’t’ and I did not care for it.”

 

* * *

 

“Okay, things are settling down outside.” Says Jimin as he walks inside their home office, where Namjoon is already sitting down on one of the chairs surrounding a circular desk. He’s writing down notes from a textbook, while many others sit awaiting on the work surface. “I think is time to make me good, partner. How do we do it? Is there a pill I can take or something I could vape?”

He looks to one of the walls.

“Where did you get a chalkboard?” He asks the taller one, who has yet to stop writing.

“It’s the _Good Place_ , you can get anything you want, at any time.” He answers without even lifting his gaze

“And you chose a chalkboard?” The blond frowns as he lifts some books from the chair besides Namjoon to sit down on it. “What are you reading?”

That’s when the elder decides to address him.

“ _The Metaphysics of Morals_ by Immanuel Kant.” He says as he shows Jimin the cover of the book. “It’s a treatise on the aesthetic preconditions of the mind’s receptivity to duty.

Jimin gives him a confused look.

“It’s a book on how to act good.” Namjoon dumbs it down for him.

“Oh, great!” Jimin says excitedly. “So, you’ve decided to help me?”

“I don’t know. There’s a thousand questions.” He stands up and begins to write on the board. “Is there a moral imperative to help you? Do I have a greater obligation to my community? Are you taking someone else’s spot, someone who deserves to be here?”

When he turns back, there’s a guilty expression on his face.

“Ooh! On that question, I honestly think I was just put here by mistake.” Jimin explains. “Because Yoongi called me Park Jimin, so he knows I’m me, he’s just wrong about my… overall ‘quality’ level.” He air quotes.

Namjoon grimaces.

“Please, help me. I swear I am worth it.” Jimin begs him.

“Tell me one fact that you know about me.” The shorter one gives him a questioning look. “I mean, we spent the whole day together, you must remember something.”

Jimin clicks his tongue.

“Where am I from?” Namjoon asks. “Do I have any siblings? Where did I go to college?”

“Trick question! You didn’t.” Jimin smiles confidently at him.

“I was literally a college professor. Do you not remember one single thing about me?” The brunet light brunet gives him an incredulous look.

“Dude, things have been nuts around here! I bet you don’t know anything about me!” Jimin reproaches him as he walks closer.

“You were born in Busan, you went to school in Seoul, you’re an only child. Your favorite show is something called _YG Treasure Box_ , and your favorite book is Kendall Jenner’s Instagram feed.” Namjoon deadpans.

The blond is shocked.

“How did you know all that?”

“Because you are constantly talking about yourself.” The other points out. “You’re the most self-obsessed person I have ever met.”

“You should see Kendall Jenner’s Instagram feed.” Jimin chuckles.

“Okay, this is my fear about you, Jimin.” He turns back to the board and writes. “You are too selfish to ever be a good person.”

“Well, I think you’re wrong.” He crosses his arms.

“Where am I from, again?”

“… That doesn’t define anything.” Jimin says pettily.

“Look, the only thing that you’re concerned with is your own happiness.” He underlines the word ‘selfish’ on the board. “That’s your problem.”

Jimin scoffs as Namjoon walks out of the room.

 

* * *

 

 

 

> _“Okay, names in the hat. Time to pick a designated driver.” Says a younger Jimin, back when he had yet to dye his hair at all, being at its natural black shade._
> 
> _He holds a baseball cap in the middle of a table in their usual bar, making sure everyone can reach it to put their names on it. Once everyone does so, he moves it shakes it softly, and then takes one._
> 
> _“And the loser is…” He unfolds the picked paper smiling. “Mingyu.”_
> 
> _“Wait, you never get picked.” Retaliates his coworker, Kim Mingyu. The smile on his face disappears. “And you’re always the one who draws the name. Let me see that.”_
> 
> _As Mingyu’s hand reaches for the paper, Jimin folds it in half and draws it closer to his chest._
> 
> _“There’s no need. Everyone here believes in my integrity 100%, right, guys?” He looks at the rest of his coworkers for backup, but all of them avoid looking him in the eye._
> 
> _“Give it to me.” Demands Mingyu as he leans across the table to grab the paper, and Jimin does what would be most logical in that situation._
> 
> _He puts it in his mouth and_ swallows it.
> 
> _“For the record,” He points at Mingyu. “I did that out of principle, because it absolutely had your name on it.”_
> 
> _“If I check the other ones, I can figure it out by process of elimination.” Says the other as he reaches for the baseball cap._
> 
> _Jimin takes the rest of the papers and swallows them as well._
> 
> _His coworkers look at him stunned._
> 
> _“Again, out of_ principle _. Let it wash over you, Mingyu.” He points at his own face. “This is what integrity looks like.”_
> 
> _Kim Mingyu gives him a dirty look, and Jimin raises his eyebrow at him, daring him to say anything else._

 

* * *

 

 

Jimin sits next to Namjoon in the chairs in front of the same stone stage where Yoongi explained where they all were the day before. Although, unlike the day before, the whole villa, including said stage, is completely trashed.

Big piles of colorful streamers and pastel colored slime, along with tiny plastic balls and other random small objects can be found all over the place.

“All right, everyone, let’s get started.” Says Yoongi from top of the stage. Taehyung stands besides him, cheery as always, holding a clipboard. “Things have settled down. So hopefully, we’re off and running. Welcome to orientation, day two.”

He walks backwards as a screen appears behind him. In the screen, a moving footage of clouds is played.

“We’re gonna start with something that everyone has always wanted to do. Flying”

The crowd applauds and cheers excitedly.

“Now that you’re dead, let’s live a little, right?” Yoongi jokes.

“Uh, sorry. Uh, Yoongi?” Seokjin’s voice is heard as the applauds slowly quiet down. The tall man, also dressed as an idol today, stands up while raising his hand. “If… If I might?”

Jimin frowns as the man walks on stage while dragging his soulmate by the hand.

“I was just thinking, earlier today in all of the chaos, large swaths of this neighborhood were destroyed. We thought,” He smiles while his free hand points at his soulmate, then at himself. “perhaps some of us could volunteer to help clean up the debris. You know, it’s quite a fun way to band together as a community, isn’t that right, Jianyu?

He looks at his soulmate hopefully. Said man only smiles and nods.

“Oh, uh, yeah, sorry.” He turns back to the crowd. “For those of you who don’t know, my soulmate, Jianyu here, is a Buddhist monk. He took a vow of silence that he’s still observing, even here, in the _Good Place_. It’s truly inspiring.”

It might be Jimin imagining things, but he’s pretty sure Seokjin’s smiled became forced as he talked about his soulmate’s vow.

“Well, Seokjin, it’s not really your job to clean up, but I suppose there’s no harm if you really want to.” Yoongi accepts.

“Oh, well. We need about, uh, twelve volunteers.” Seokjin smiles as people start raising their hands.

Jimin leans closer to Namjoon.

“I can’t believe all these people are passing on flying to pick up garbage all day.” He whispers to the other with a smug expression. “Have fun nerds. I’ll be soaring through the air like a _forkin’_ bird.”

That’s when Namjoon interlaces the blond’s hand with his own and raises them together.

“Jimin and I would love to help.” He announces to Seokjin

“Ah, Hurrah! Yay!” Seokjin claps on stage as Jimin forces his ‘soulmate’ to lower their hands, not separating them yet.

“Dude.” He wines.

“You want to prove you’re not selfish? Here’s the perfect test.” Namjoon whispers to him. “There’s something fun that you want to do, and then there’s something less fun that people are doing for the common good. Which do you choose?”

Namjoon looks at him expectantly, and Jimin curses Seokjin internally.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you may have notice, many other idols (like IU and NCT's Doyoung in the last chapter, and SEVENTEEN's Mingyu in this one) will be making small cameos every here and there, so stay tuned for that. Some others wil have bigger characters, but I won't tag them until the to not spoil the surprise.
> 
> I'd really like to know what you think of this so far, so don't be afraid to leave a comment; and if you have seen The Good Place, tell me if you have any guess as who will be playing the other main characters in here.


	5. v. flying, but not really

“Have fun.” Taehyung says to the next person to step in the platform they’ve placed on the stage.

The person in the platform, and the ones in the line waiting for their turn, all are wearing colorful jumpsuits. Up in the sky, many are already enjoying their first time flying.

As Jimin shovels a pile of baby pink slime, he sees Bae Joohyun, dressed in a purple jumpsuit, flying closer to the ground.

“Hey, up there.” He greets her.

“Hi, Jimin!” She waves at him with a wide smile.

“Having fun, or does it maybe suck, probably?” He asks, hopeful.

“Well, I wouldn’t call it fun. I’d say it’s like fifty million simultaneous orgasms, but better.” Jimin curses Seokjin internally, _again_. “How’s volunteer garbage pickup?”

“About the same.” He forces himself to smile.

“Great.” She waves before flying away.

Jimin frowns. _This better be worth it_ , he thinks.

 

* * *

 

“You know, this really reminds me of my time in Vietnam.” Seokjin tells his soulmate as he takes all the streamers out of the fountain. He takes them to the garbage can Jianyu was throwing slime into. “Picking up mortar shells with my godfather, Jaein.”

Jianyu looks at him with a small smile on his face, and Seokjin shrugs while he picks up a shovel.

“Doesn’t really matter what he’s a president of. It’s not really important.” He bends down to shovel some slime.

“Seokjin!” Both men turn around as Yoongi walks closer to them. “How goes the cleaning?”

“Oh, swimmingly, Yoongi. And I have to say, this neighborhood that you’ve built is truly a masterpiece,” The shorter gives them a gummy smile. “the likes of which I’ve never seen. And I’ve been to Johnny Depp’s private bird sanctuary.”

“Well, thank you. That’s very kind of you to say.” Yoongi’s smile disappears. “But it’s also dead wrong.”

Jianyu gets closer and Seokjin gives him a questioning look.

“This neighborhood is a disaster.” He leans closer to the couple to whisper. “See, I must have made a mistake somewhere. And it led to all this chaos, and now I’m just… I’m just terrified that it’s gonna happen again.”

He leans back and talks to them in his normal volume.

“I’m trying to put a good face on… Uh, well,” He touches his face with both hands. “this face that I’ve constructed for myself. But the truth is, I… I’m just miserable.”

Yoongi lowers his hands, looking dejected.

“I have to go.” He bows at them, then starts to walk away. “Thank you so much for your service.”

“Oh, no.” Seokjin turns to his soulmate. “Powerful people do not handle failure well. Yoongi could be heading for a total meltdown.” Jianyu looks at him intently. “Soulmate, are you thinking what I’m thinking? Should we say it at the same time?”

He puts their shovels aside and grabs Jianyu’s hands.

“All right. One, two, three.” He counts excitedly. “We must help Yoongi!”

His soulmate only smiles at him.

“Oh, you sly devil. You’re going to keep me on my toes, aren’t you?” He gives his soulmate a forced smile as he interlaces one of their hands. “all right, come on. Let’s go.”

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

> _“Hey, guys!” Jimin greets his coworkers as he approaches their regular table at their favorite bar._
> 
> _“Okay, Jimin. Just a reminder,” Says Mingyu with a forced smile. “we switched to a rotating system for choosing a designated driver, and it’s your turn.”_
> 
> _“Got it.” The raven-haired chuckles softly. “Full disclosure, I forgot we were doing this new system. I got off work early, and I’ve been here for about an hour, so I’m already pretty drunk.”_
> 
> _He smirks at Mingyu, who pushes his untouched martini away and grimaces back at him._
> 
> _“Someone else will do it.” Says his bitter coworker._
> 
> _“Good call.” His smirk widens._
> 
>  

* * *

 

People cheering up in the sky can be heard from the outside table they sat on after Seokjin convinced Yoongi to eat some frozen yogurt with them.

“I can’t believe they’ve managed to mix one million flavors together, and yet, somehow, I can taste each individual one.” Says a cheerful Seokjin while looking at his cup. “It’s remarkable.”

Seokjin chose for both his soulmate and him a mix of all their flavors, which resulted in a very colorful looking yogurt with a cherry on top. While Seokjin had already ate about half of it, Jianyu kept inspecting it with an interested look, rotating every few seconds without haven eaten even a spoon of it. Yoongi’s white yogurt looked really plain in comparison.

“I got no-flavor.” The suited man states. “It’s all I deserve, really.”

“No.” Seokjin shakes his head, and even Jianyu looks up to frown at Yoongi.

“Look, I appreciate you trying to cheer me up. I really do, but you don’t understand.” Says a dejected Yoongi. “This was the very first neighborhood that I got to design. It was my chance to prove myself, and now I’ve blown it”

“You know, sometimes a flaw can make something even more beautiful.” Seokjin smiles kindly.

Jianyu looks at the other two as one would observing a tennis match, holding his full yogurt cup with both hands.

“Seokjin, if I made one tiny mistake in my design, even a single glitch in the system, even…” He drifts off while looking at the path besides the frozen yogurt shop.

When Seokjin turns to see what caught Yoongi’s attention, he is faced with a fluffy white Maltese whimpering as it looks at the sky.

“The whole neighborhood is compromised.” Says the other frowning at the dog.

Before he can even ask what he means by that, Yoongi is already standing up and walking closer to it.

“Whose dog is that?” He asks in a panicked tone.

Seokjin stands to go after Yoongi, Jianyu observes the commotion with a confused look from the table.

“Guys! Whose dog is that?!” He shouts at the passersby, all who give him a confused look.

Seokjin isn’t sure why the dog seemed to have altered Yoongi, and when he’s about to speak up, the other turns at him.

“See? This is one of those glitches I was talking about.” He starts running towards the dog. “Nice try, puppy!”

Then, surprising Seokjin, he kicks the dog into the sky. He gasps, and even Jianyu stands up to try and see where the dog would end up, only for it to disappear into the sun.

Yoongi cheers.

“That was a close one.” He says to a staggered Seokjin.

“Bbuggu!” A feminine voice breaks the silence caused by Yoongi’s actions.

Lee Jieun walks with a leash on her hand, searching,

“Bbuggu!” Seokjin pales as she bumps into Yoongi accidentally, making her look up. “Sorry. Hey, by any chance, have you seen my dog?”

Yoongi freezes.

 

* * *

 

Jimin is carrying the garbage back on his back, searching for dumpster, when it breaks in the middle of the path.

 _As if my day couldn’t get any worse_ ¸ he thinks. _Shouldn’t these be magical or something?_

He bends down to assess the damage, when in the distance Taehyung’s voice announces.

“Five more minutes, flyers!” He stops on the spot.

“Oh, man, really?” Jimin wines.

He grabs as much as he can and leaves it in the first building he finds with an unlocked door.

 

* * *

 

“Taehyung, I’m finished with cleanup and I’m ready to fly.” Announces an excited Jimin as he buttons up his blue jumpsuit while approaching the platform in front of the other. “How do I start?”

“Hop on the launch pad and conjure an image that brings you pure joy.” Jimin hops on while the taller keeps explaining. “Some people think of their wedding day, or favorite vacation spot, or—”

“People puking on roller coasters” Jimin closes his eyes and whispers twice before he can feel himself being lifted off the ground. He looks down to see how his feet are slowly getting farther away from the platform. “It’s working!”

His excitement doesn’t last long. He feels something hit his head before he goes tumbling down.

“Ow! What the _fork_?!” Just as he’s about to turn to see what hit him, something else falls at his feet. An empty milk carton.

Black clouds begin to cover the sky as more it starts raining trash.

“Taehyung, any chance this is a scheduled trash storm?” Jimin asks apprehensively.

 


	6. vi. regrets and disappointments

“So, here’s the situation, Jieun.” Yoongi says nonchalantly besides an apologetic Seokjin, who is holding a white Maltese. “I kind of kicked your dog into the sun. But I got her back”

Yoongi grabs the whimpering dog from Seokjin and holds it towards its owner.

“Everything… everything seems fine.” The shorter man says while Jieun examines her pet.

“Bbuggu, thank goodness you’re okay.” She says as he hugs Bbuggu.

“Everyone, it is merely a construct of a dog. It feels no pain or joy or love.” Yoongi explains.

“Bbuggu doesn’t love me?” Asks a heartbroken Jieun.

Seokjin tenses and distances himself a step from Yoongi. Jianyu, who had remained besides them, takes a glance at him, and something must have been wrong about his expression, because his soulmate surprises him by holding his hand.

Yoongi is speechless for a few seconds.

“Oh! Oh, no, no, no, no, no. It definitely feels love.” He says, flustered. Instead of being reassured, Jieun only looks confused. “Do you actually want a dog that loves you a little bit more? Because I can kick her right back into the sun and get you another one just like that.”

He finishes as he snaps his fingers and walks forward. Bbuggu, as if sensing the danger, whimpers again.

“No!” Jieun takes a step back.

“Oh, boy. I’m only making things worse.” An anxious Yoongi crouches down and starts to hyperventilate.

Seokjin untangles his hand from his soulmate’s, and puts his arms around the architect to guide him into a kneeling position on the floor.

“Okay, all right, it’s alright. Breathe, breathe, do you even breathe?” Yoongi lifts his gaze while he keeps hyperventilating. ”If you do, then just breathe. ’Cause everything is fine, Yoongi. It’s fine.”

Right when Yoongi is finally starting to breathe normally again, a carton box filled with white papers falls in the middle of the small group, making Jieun jump backwards and Seokjin gasp.

Jianyu looks to the sky and points a finger upwards, and the broad-shouldered man glances up to see it covered in a dark greenish color. However, they don’t seem to be just normal rain clouds, it seems like...

“It’s raining garbage. Run!” Seokjin hears someone say as he feels a hand wrap around his, and before he can even react, he's already being tugged away from the open street.

 

* * *

 

Jimin tries to avoid being hit from the garbage falling from the sky as he runs down the street, looking at all the people also running while trying to look for shelter, he’s on a quest to find a specific someone. Just as he’s about to give up and run home, he finds him.

“Namjoon!” Jimin struggles to catch his breath as he gets to the older, who has hiding from the storm under the porch of a building nearby. “Hey, before you say anything…”

Namjoon looks at him intently, clearly waiting for him to continue.

“That’s it, I just don’t want you to say anything.” Jimin averts his gaze to the trash-filled street.

“What did you do?!” The other snaps.

“Nothing!” He crosses his arms, acting offended. “It just started raining trash out of nowhere for no reason at all.”

Just then, a lightning strikes right in front of Jimin, lifting a bunched of ripped paper sheets and also making him shriek.

“Okay! Fine, fine!” He yells at the sky as he steps closer to Namjoon instinctively. “My bag broke, and I ditched the trash instead of taking it all the way to the dumpster.”

He confesses while avoiding looking at the older.

“But in my defense,” He points at Namjoon. “there were only five minutes left in flying and I wanted to go flying.”

“How is that a defense? You made a bad choice.” The other says outragedly.

“I made a bad choice?” Jimin asks, shocked. “We could’ve literally been flying, and all _you_ wanted to do was talk about morals. I mean, you’re like the worst part of Superman.”

“This is a relief. I can stop my deliberations.” The elder points at him. “You’re a selfish person, and it is pointless to help you. You’re on your own.”

And before Jimin can say anything else, he leaves.

 

* * *

 

 

“I don’t know whats happening.” Admits a confused Yoongi later that night in the living room of Seokjin and Jianyu’s house.

The garbage storm had stopped hours ago, and even though most of the trash in the street was still there, the residential zones had already been cleaned.

“I mean, it’s my duty to be calm and in control, and I’m falling apart.” The architect confesses from the other end of the pink, victorian couch Seokjin was sitting at. Even though it was a big couch, Jianyu was sitting on the floor in a meditating pose, eyes closed and seemingly ignoring the conversation between the other two.

“No, Yoongi. You are a paragon of fortitude.” Seokjin puts a hand on the other’s shoulder as he tries to cheer him up, obtaining only a frown and a scoff. “You’re a mountain of strength.”

“I’m not a mountain of strength.” He covers his face with his hands. “I’m a canyon of disaster.”

“Jianyu!” Seokjin whisper-shouts, making the other open his eyes to look at him. “The architect of this neighborhood has referred to himself as a canyon of disaster. Surely, now, you will say something.”

It might be wrong to use the situation like that, but he is getting desperate at this point, he really wants to communicate with his soulmate.

“Grace us with your vocalized wisdom. Please, I’m begging you.”

Jianyu looks to the side for a few seconds and the stands up, making the broad-shouldered man hopeful. Once he sits on couch, Yoongi looks up and turns to him, probably expecting him to say something as well. However, they are both surprised when Jianyu grabs the architect’s shoulder with one hand and puts the other in front of where his heart should be.

Yoongi inhales loudly.

“Oh.” He says as the Buddhist monk only looks him in the eye. He lifts one of his own hands to put it on top of Jianyu’s. “Yes, yes, I understand. The strength is inside me, its been there all along.”

Seokjin does nothing to hide the shock in his expression.

“No, of course.” Yoongi continues, looking confident. “I can overcome any obstacle. Oh, thank you, Jianyu. Thank you.”

Jianyu gives him a few pats on the shoulder with a tiny smile, and then Yoongi stands up, chuckling.

“I’m back!” He tells the couple and then leaves.

“You did it!” Seokjin says, smiling widely as he turns back to his soulmate. “Oh, you have so much to teach me.”

Jianyu just stares at him, smile still present on his lips. The other scoots closer to the monk.

“Maybe I should try to be silent too. Look.” He puts a hand on the other’s arm. “Here I go.”

There’s about a second of silence in the room.

“Oh! That was wonderful! So, cleansing.” He says excitedly, even though he’s actually a little bit disappointed.

Looks like he won’t be getting a word from his soulmate yet.

 

* * *

 

 

That night, no matter what position he turns to, it seems like Jimin is unable to fall asleep. There was a weird feeling in his chest that just wouldn’t allow him to.

So, after an hour or two of rolling on the bed, he gets up and heads out.

 

* * *

 

>  
> 
> _Indistinct conversations and laughter can be heard from Jimin’s spot on the bar. Somehow, Kim Mingyu finally achieved in making Jimin be the designated driver for the night._
> 
> _Deciding he was not gonna let Mingyu see him sulking, he told the others he was gonna sit at the bar so no to tempt himself with the alcohol at their table. So now, he’s sulking at the bar, alone, while he moves the ice on his glass with his straw to entertain himself._
> 
> _“Just water tonight, huh?” He looks up to see the handsome bartender smiling at him. “Designated driver?”_
> 
> _“Yeah, it sucks.” Jimin says as he continues playing with his straw._
> 
> _“I think it’s awesome.” Says the bartender with a shrug. “I mean, someone’s got to do it, right? I think it’s a cool thing to do for your friends.”_
> 
> _Jimin nods, stargazed._
> 
> _“Yeah. No, I meant how it sucks I can’t do it more often, you know?” He says, confidently. “I actually prefer it to drinking. Staying sober and knowing my friends will get to go home safe, that’s my buzz.”_
> 
> _It’s the biggest lie he has tell in a while, but hey, someone’s got to get laid, right?_
> 
> _A few minutes later, Jimin approaches the table of his coworkers._
> 
> _“Hey guys, good news and bad news.” He says with a big smile. “See that hot bartender over there?”_
> 
> _He points to the bar, where the bartender was picking up his things as the next coworker in turn started making people’s drinks._
> 
> _“He’s into me, and we’re gonna bang it out. The bad news is, it means I cant drive you guys home. But,” he says at his disappointed coworkers. “I did call a cab for you guys.”_
> 
> _Just as the expression of relief appeared on their faces, he continued._
> 
> _“But, they recognized my number, and they didn’t want to come. I’ve thrown up in a lot of cabs. So, are we good here?”_
> 
> _“Jimin, you have a very important choice to make.” Says Mingyu, his expression as angry as the rest sitting on the table. “If you blow us off, you are banned from Thursday night drinks forever.”_
> 
> _The rest nods. Jimin thinks about it for a few seconds._
> 
> _“Yeah, I’m good with that.” He leaves with a smile as big as the one he arrived to the table with._

 

* * *

 

 

It’s after he’s filled six and a half big plastic bags, that street he’s on looks decent. There’s still some trash in the rest of the neighborhood, but at least it’s not as bad as it was before.

Jimin is tying up the seventh bag when he hears steps, and when he looks up, he’s surprised to see Namjoon walking towards him with a faint smile.

“Hey.” He wipes the sweet off his forehead with the back of his hand.

“What are you doing?” The taller one asks, looking down at all the trash bags.

“I went to all the places where I dumped trash earlier and cleaned it up so it couldn’t be traced back to me.” He shrugs, feigning it was only self interest that made him clean up almost the whole street.

“Well, it looks like you cleaned up everything.” Jimin adverts his gaze. “You’re doing this because you feel bad. And, you’re not even doing it to get me to help you anymore, because I told you that’s not gonna happen”

“Okay, yeah, fine!” He looks back at Namjoon. “I felt bad about what I did, it was a weird feeling. Not used to it. Didn’t love it.”

“Well, feeling remorse about being wrong isn’t as wrong as doing something right, but it’s a start. Look, I think you’re capable of change” He sighs. “And… I will help you try.”

Jimin is so surprised, he really didn’t think Namjoon would agree to help him _again._

“Oh, I swear I won’t let you down.

Just then, a low ding can be heard by both men.

“Hi there.” Says Taehyung from behind Jimin, two bags full of trash in each hand. “I’ve collected the worst-smelling garbage that I could find.”

Jimin turns around with an alarmed expression.

“Do you still want me to dump it inside of Seokjin’s house?” He asks with his usual smile.

Jimin turns back to Namjoon. The elder raises an eyebrow at him.

“What?! No!” He tells Taehyung, exaggerating his voice tone. “I did _not_ tell you to do that.”

Namjoon shakes his head as he crosses his arms.

“Okay, I won’t let you down starting now.”

Namjoon bites his lips to avoid smiling at the whole situation.

 

* * *

 

 

“So, I have moved out of the guestroom officially, and into the master bedroom.” Announces Namjoon as he walks towards their living room, where Jimin is sitting with a lot of philosophical books on the coffee table. “Figured it causes less suspicion if someone visits and make things our material for our “good person” lessons easier to store.”

He starts picking up some of the said books to put them away.

“Cool. Uh, just FYI, I’m a very loud snorer.” He says unapologetically. “And I like to drip dry in the nude, so eyes to yourself, perv.”

Namjoon stares blankly at him.

“Okay. Fine. Now you got a long way to go to pull this off. It will take hours and hours of studying ethics and moral philosophy.” He raises the books in his hands as if to reiterate his statement. “We are gonna have assignments and quizzes and papers. It’s gonna be so much fun.”

Namjoon finishes with a kind smile.

“Remind me again, what am I getting out of this?” Jimin asks with a bored expression.

“You get to avoid eternal damnation.”

“Oh, yeah. Right” He says more cheerfully now.

Namjoon is just walking away with the books, when Jimin sees a card slide under their door. He frowns as he walks to pick it up

The card is a simple, white rectangle, and handwritten caps made with a black marker say

**YOU DON’T BELONG HERE**

Jimin rapidly opens the door and runs outside. However, when he walked out, there wasn’t anyone nearby.

“Aw, _shirt_.” Jimin mumbles as he walks back inside.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how often I'll be updating, since I have a new Monday X fic I also need to update, however I'll try to do it as soon as possible. I hope you are enjoying it so far, don't forget to leave a comment so I can know your thoughts on this.
> 
> Lastly, I'll most likely post on my twitter when the updates will be, so follow me @itsamonbebe to be up to date on when new chapters will be out or to just fangirl over kpop together, my dms are open.


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